Archives for Nate Abbott

Stuck in the morning rush hour and missed that first meeting? Freeway a parking lot and missed your kid’s soccer game? We’ve all been there. It’s no fun. And since your commute sets the mood for what happens after you arrive, wouldn’t you want to know before you go?

That was the thinking behind MapQuest’s new standalone app, “Commute,” that hit Amazon, iTunes and PLAY app stores today. “Commute” by MapQuest simplifies the daily drive and delivers more convenience to your everyday route.

It’s the simplest app for information about your daily routine: Commute monitors route conditions and proactively alerts the user to travel times or impactful incidents to better lay expectations for the drive to and from work, school or a daily drive.

Commute is a mobile app for folks interested solely in getting accurate real-time information available on their commute pushed to them every day. And while Commute serves a specific experience, we also continue to invest in our free navigation apps across all platforms, recently launching enhanced traffic and alternate route features. These and other features from our comprehensive navigation apps complement the standalone Commute experience.

To get started on all smartphone platforms, download the free Commute app and enter some basic information. You will then start receiving notifications 15 minutes prior to your scheduled departure, with information like an understanding of arrival time based on your preferred departure information, and what can be expected along this route based on the most current road conditions.

Commuting outside of your scheduled times or wanting to add extra stops to your drive? Link directly from Commute to MapQuest’s free navigation app for a more robust experience: alternate routes, voice-guided directions, customized routes to fit a to-do list or even recommendations for local discovery.

Traveling and exploring new places is a passion of ours at MapQuest. And as any traveler knows, finding the right place to stay during a trip can make all the difference.

Since February, users have been able to book hotels directly on MapQuest. Today we’ve rolled out our first major innovation on that product: Hotels at Destination. With Hotels at Destination the hotel booking experience is seamlessly integrated into the MapQuest experience.

When you search for a long route, we now suggest hotels at your destination that might interest you:

When you click to see the hotels, they are now arranged on a map taking into account distance from your destination. You can then sort them by price and popularity:

And you can then check out hotel details:

We’re very proud of the new hotel search functionality. We’re continuing to innovate on this product and you will see improvements in the near future.

Let us know what’s important to you in a hotel booking experience in the comments!